


How to Get a Date During a Boss Fight

by makebelieveanything



Series: AFTG Bingo 2020 [2]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Alternate Universe-Sword Art Online, M/M, video game violence, virtual reality au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-07-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 10:34:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25349284
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makebelieveanything/pseuds/makebelieveanything
Summary: Andrew gets stuck in a virtual reality where his real life is in danger, but instead of focusing on that Andrew lets his feelings for a cute boy almost get him killed, but what else is new?or a Sword Art Online-AU where Andrew is Kirito, Neil is Azuna, Kevin is Klein, and Matt is Agil and they all fight a floor boss.
Relationships: Kevin Day & Andrew Minyard, Matt Boyd & Neil Josten, Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Series: AFTG Bingo 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1815259
Comments: 5
Kudos: 82
Collections: AFTG Bingo Blackout 2020 - Cupcakes, All For The Game Bingo 2020





	How to Get a Date During a Boss Fight

**Author's Note:**

> As always thank you to my beautiful friend and beta [justadreamfox](https://archiveofourown.org/users/justadreamfox)! All mistakes are my own. This is a self indulgent fusion of Sword Art Online and Sword Art Online Abriged within the beautiful world of our favorite fandom. 
> 
> As part of the AFTG Bingo Blackout 2020-Cupcakes for the Video Game AU.

Once Andrew got past the fact that he was stuck in a world where he was required to murder his way through 100 floors filled with monsters and bosses created by a madman who thought it would be “entertaining” to trap thousands of people in a virtual reality (and yes, apparently he could move past that fact given enough time), Andrew realized that he was startlingly good at Sword Art Online. The irony that he could succeed so well at virtual reality and fail so epically at actual reality did not escape him. 

Andrew was easily one of the best players in the game; even the largest guilds sought him out when they needed to clear a floor boss. Which is how Andrew ended up in an argument with Neil, the second in command to the Knights of the Blood Oath (who came up with that stupid name anyways, the reincarnation of King Arthur?), who was currently doing his damndest to ruin Andrew’s good day.

“We need you at the front, there is a boss room coming up that no one has even gotten a glimpse of, and anyone who has gone in doesn’t come back out,” Neil argued, his hands braced on his hips right next to the deceptively innocuous rapier he wore at his waist. 

“I’ll come when I’m ready. If you’re that worried don’t go in,” Andrew replied lazily, refusing to even glance in Neil’s direction as he easily lopped off the head of a low level boar demon. 

“You have so much talent, why are you down here doing nothing when you could be helping us beat this fucking game?” Neil asked, exasperated.

“Because I can...because I don’t answer to you or your boss... because it’s gorgeous outside...because you haven’t given me a good enough reason to, yet.” Andrew ticked off the responses, the slash of his black sword a sharp punctuation to each reason (okay, so he was admittedly being a tad dramatic).

“What would it take?” Neil asked.

“Mmmm, a day off. You and me take a day off and do whatever we want to as long as it doesn’t include fighting front line bosses,” Andrew responded.

“Deal,” Neil agreed easily.

“Don’t you have to ask the _Commander_?” Andrew teased. 

“He’s the leader of the guild not my goddamn keeper,” Neil retorted.

“Okay, deal.”

Andrew wiped his blade on the grass before sliding it easily into its sheath across his back. He followed Neil through the gates to floor 68 and they marched their way through the floor in silence. When they finally met up with the group prepared to enter the main boss room, Andrew was surprised to find Kevin (along with his guild, because seriously did he ever go anywhere without them?), as well as Matt hanging out with the rest of the group.

“Matt, how’d they drag you out of your forge and into this battle?” Neil asked smiling, shaking the burly man’s hand. 

“I can fight just as well as the rest of you,” Matt laughed pulling Neil into a bear hug. “Just because I spend most of my days welding your weapons instead of wielding them doesn’t mean I don’t know how little man.” (Andrew was sure there was a sex joke in there somewhere.) 

While Matt and Neil caught up, Andrew wandered over to Kevin, ignoring his proffered hand. The two had been precarious friends since they’d met the first day - Andrew had given Kevin some pointers on how to wield his weapons (the literal ones), and stood beside him when they heard the ludicrous announcement that they were all trapped in a virtual game that had suddenly transcended the bounds of reality: death in this made up world suddenly meant death in the real world.

Andrew had run then, had left Kevin to find his friends and create his guild. Andrew didn’t regret that choice; Andrew didn’t believe in regret. However, their friendship had been slightly ambiguous ever since (admittedly Andrew didn’t really do friendship either). 

“You ready for this?” Kevin asked, the light in his eyes a glint of excitement for the battle ahead, the thrill of adrenalin.

“Always,” was Andrew’s bored response. He may have been unimaginably talented at killing imaginary enemies for the sake of his own life, but he’d never have Kevin’s enthusiasm for the game. Andrew had learned to survive in this world; Kevin had learned to thrive.

\---

The carnage started early, and the reason no one had ever made it out of this boss room alive was pretty simple, and extremely sadistic: no crystals worked in the boss room - transportation, healing, protection, antidote, none of them. 

Kevin was alive, somewhere in the chaos, because Andrew could hear him yelling orders and commands - trying to keep the members of his guild alive. Matt had a gaping wound in his side, but the blacksmith was tough - tougher than his teddy bear personality and smiling features portrayed. Neil though, Andrew hadn’t caught sight of Neil since about ten minutes after the battle had started. 

In his mind Andrew knew Neil was perfectly capable of holding his own - hell, it wasn’t just luck that Neil had become the second in command to the most notorious and successful guild in the game (despite its ridiculous name). Still, Andrew found himself distracted from the attacks and parries; distracted from the large raging boss that had the body of a norse god, the head of a bull, and six different arms half of which ended in pincers or some form of stinger. Distracted, because his mind kept searching his periphery for a glimpse of Neil’s ostentatious red hair, or his whip-quick repartee. 

Andrew was so distracted he barely got his sword up fast enough to block the blow that came from two different sides. One of the beast’s arms slammed into his sword arm sending him careening right into the side sweep from another arm that took out both of his legs and sent his body tumbling across the floor - his sword skidding out of reach. Andrew turned over with a groan trying to pull himself into a sitting position, reaching desperately for a back-up weapon as he watched one of the beast’s massive orange arms descend towards him (oh yes, the beast was orange, like tangerine colored orange).

With his gaze focused solely on the pincer propelling straight for his head, Andrew didn’t see the blur of red to his left followed by a golden swish of steel that moved so quickly he never would have seen the move even if he’d been looking directly at it. Before he recognized what had happened, the beast’s arm was severed right above the elbow and Andrew was being showered in gorey blue blood instead of being decapitated (gross, and very sticky - double gross). 

Neil landed lightly at Andrew’s side, his rapier dropping from his hand as he fell to his knees beside Andrew’s head. 

“Are you okay?” Neil asked breathlessly, hands ghosting over Andrew’s armor searching for wounds, but not actually touching him. 

“I’m fine, Neil I’m fine. Have you seen my sword?” Andrew responded, grabbing Neil’s hand with one of his and squeezing hard. 

Neil shuffled to the left and grabbed Andrew’s sword bringing it back over to him. 

“You don’t get to die here, do you hear me?” Neil demanded, his eyes filled with an angry light Andrew had never seen. 

“What will you give me if I don’t?” Andrew retorted, the corner of his lip tucking up to the left just barely. 

“Anything. You stay alive and I’ll give you the goddamn moon if you want it,” Neil replied, a sharp, defiant smile slipping onto his face. 

“Deal,” Andrew agreed. (Really who says no to the moon - definitely not someone who hasn’t seen it with their own eyes for two full years.) He let Neil hoist him to his feet before they turned back to the battle raging around them. 

Neil squeezed Andrew’s hand once and nodded towards the beast; it was missing multiple arms now, besides the one Neil had chopped off, and it’s HP bars were down to the final one. This was their last chance if they wanted to finish it off. 

“Kevin, you alive?” Andrew called.

“Right here, what’s the plan?” he asked, bounding up from behind Andrew and Neil. 

“Neil and I are going to quick attack, one than the other. When it moves to counter attack you and your guys step in and block. Rinse. Repeat. Got it?” 

“Got it,” Kevin agreed, already turning and shouting orders to the people left standing. 

Neil’s only response was another squeeze of Andrew’s hand before he withdrew it and lifted his rapier. 

“On three: one...two...” Andrew started. 

“Three,” they said together. (Andrew definitely didn’t dwell on how cliché and adorable that was.)

Andrew and Neil launched themselves in a full sprint towards the beast’s right flank. Andrew attacked first, slamming everything he had into that first blow; Neil’s blindingly quick attack came immediately as Andrew withdrew - barely a flash as he dashed in, and out - causing an unprecedented amount of damage for such a small sword. 

They both leapt clear as the blocking force swooped in, Kevin and Matt at its head. With so many people focused solely on blocking, the force of the beast’s blow was distributed enough that no one person received an irrevocable amount of damage. However, it also meant they moved too slowly, unable to get out of the way for Andrew and Neil to attack with the speed they needed to take advantage of the opening. Before Andrew could think of another solution Neil turned to him with an ear-splitting grin. 

“Give me a boost?” he asked, and Andrew didn’t hesitate before putting out his hands and using his strength to launch Neil above the blocking phalanx. Neil shouted something at Matt as he fell towards them, and the blacksmith lifted his steel enforced shield above his head using it as a makeshift trampoline to throw Neil even higher into the air - directly at the beast’s roaring mouth. 

“Again,” Andrew yelled as he took a running start before leaping at Matt (because apparently they’d become amateur gymnasts today). Kevin joined Matt this time, shoved his shoulder underneath Matt’s raised shield and the two men launched Andrew after Neil. Andrew didn’t get quite as much height as Neil’s small, lithe body, but he got enough to slam his sword hilt deep into the side of the beast’s jaw that was a hair’s breadth away from taking off Neil’s arm. The force of Andrew’s blow turned the beast’s head to the left opening up the delicate underside of his neck, and instead of withdrawing Neil went in for the final blow: a series of lighting fast strikes that sliced open the beast’s carotid allowing the swing of Andrew’s body, and the drag of his sword in the beast’s jaw, to rip its head clean off its body. (Yes that was just as gruesome as it sounded.)

Andrew landed with a hard thump, dropping the hilt of his sword as the beast’s severed head rolled harmlessly away. The rest of the body disintegrated into multicolored, flashing lights (like goddamn rainbow confetti), and a pop up message appeared floating above the beast’s head announcing their success. 

Neil landed feather light beside Andrew, flopping down on the floor with an exhausted sigh. 

“We did it,” he said, his voice filled with a slight sense of wonder. 

“And seeing as I’m still alive, you owe me a deal,” Andrew said, standing over Neil’s starfished form. “I’m cashing in now. As soon as we’re out of this room we’re taking that vacation day. And when we get out of this godforsaken game, I’m taking you on a date, so you better stay alive until then.”

“Deal,” Neil agreed, the smile on his face growing impossibly wider than it had been before.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this talk to me on tumblr at [makebelieveanything](https://makebelieveanything.tumblr.com).


End file.
